I AM STARVING!!!!!

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tuffenuff
tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
in Head and Neck Cancer #1
I am just in tears over here. I'm hungry, I want to eat, but I can't taste ANYTHING!!! My mouth and throat are fine still and I want to EAT EAT EAT while I can but it's almost nauseating to choke down a mouthful of cardboard flavored nastiness. I know this is just the beginning so I have to get a grip.
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  • ditto1
    ditto1 Member Posts: 660
    #2
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    Give it time
    I thought I would never eat and this was after my 1st full dose chemo/cistiplan but it came back and eat I did. So hang in there your ability to taste will come back likely this week. Im now done with both by cistiplan treatments 21 days apart, now I am doing Erbitex for the next 8 weeks in conjuction with my RADS that start on the 26th. So although Im eating now I realize its a matter of time before thats going to change. So again one day at a time and heres to hoping your eating very soon.
  • tuffenuff
    tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
    #3
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    ditto1 said:

    Give it time
    I thought I would never eat and this was after my 1st full dose chemo/cistiplan but it came back and eat I did. So hang in there your ability to taste will come back likely this week. Im now done with both by cistiplan treatments 21 days apart, now I am doing Erbitex for the next 8 weeks in conjuction with my RADS that start on the 26th. So although Im eating now I realize its a matter of time before thats going to change. So again one day at a time and heres to hoping your eating very soon.

    Well I wimped out and opted
    Well I wimped out and opted for the weekly Cisplatin instead of the big doses 21 days apart. I was too afraid of being sick. Jokes on me!!! Not sick but taste is pretty much wrecked from here on out. Guess I just need to suck it up and move on.
  • phrannie51
    phrannie51 Member Posts: 4,716
    #4
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    Wow....I'm still learning!!
    All this time of no taste, and I've blamed it entirely on radiation...I didn't know that my chemo treatments were contributing.

    I remember when I first got on this bus, I thought..."well eating to fuel myself will be what I'll have to do, if food has taste or not"....easier said than done :). I have eaten many plates of tasteless food, and only one of each....I've tried mnay, many things...because once I've eaten something totally without taste, I don't really want it again! The oddest things have some taste. Like the other night, my sister made a big pork pie...spuds, carrots, celery, and meat (I can't do meat at all)...but the rest was all easily mooshed up with gravy...the only part I could taste was the crust...weird, since it's most tasteless part of the whole thing. Mac and cheese has a little taste to me, also...not a lot but at least it's something. Mostly tho, I drink my meals...I can taste Ensure, Instant Breakfast, and milk...I have no idea what the supplements taste like in reality...LOL...but for now, I look forward to them.

    p
  • katenorwood
    katenorwood Member Posts: 1,912
    #5
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    phrannie51 said:

    Wow....I'm still learning!!
    All this time of no taste, and I've blamed it entirely on radiation...I didn't know that my chemo treatments were contributing.

    I remember when I first got on this bus, I thought..."well eating to fuel myself will be what I'll have to do, if food has taste or not"....easier said than done :). I have eaten many plates of tasteless food, and only one of each....I've tried mnay, many things...because once I've eaten something totally without taste, I don't really want it again! The oddest things have some taste. Like the other night, my sister made a big pork pie...spuds, carrots, celery, and meat (I can't do meat at all)...but the rest was all easily mooshed up with gravy...the only part I could taste was the crust...weird, since it's most tasteless part of the whole thing. Mac and cheese has a little taste to me, also...not a lot but at least it's something. Mostly tho, I drink my meals...I can taste Ensure, Instant Breakfast, and milk...I have no idea what the supplements taste like in reality...LOL...but for now, I look forward to them.

    p

    No taste
    Hello,
    I wish I could help anyone in this position....have you tried the flavored mashed potatoes ? Can make your own and flavor with ranch dressings....I also did alot of soups when I couldn't eat well. Still can't eat meat....try but just can't do. Also pancakes....with real maple syrup. Just some suggestions...sorry wish I could help more. Best wishes and thinking of you ! Katie
  • Grandmax4
    Grandmax4 Member Posts: 723
    #6
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    It's strange
    tho I didnt have chemo or radiation, my taste buds were really messed up by the surgery.
    The first things that tasted good to me were acidey ( is that a word:) anyway, tomato soup and orange juice was my diet for about a month...ugh, I've never liked either one, and now almost 8 months later, I feel nauseaous just thinking of eating them.
  • boardwalkgirl
    boardwalkgirl Member Posts: 269
    #7
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    I can kind of relate, I did
    I can kind of relate, I did day 10 radiation today and had chemo, cisplatin, last week and will have second round starting July 2nd. I was not anticipating the sore mouth and throat already but here it is. I have been trying for the past 2 days to find something that I can taste and swallow. I would even go for something that I can swallow at this point. I did find I can taste Beefy Mushroom Soup, and jello mixed with whipped cream but it still feels like I am swallowing glass. Hoping tomorrow is better,
  • hwt
    hwt Member Posts: 2,328 Member
    #8
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    Food
    Since others mentioned milk and pancakes with syrup, they might be worth trying because they worked for me too. For some reason rice krispies with plenty of milk worked for me most days as did baked potato with butter and sour cream. When mouth sores got bad, food went down better with a glass of chocolate milk. I would think of something that sounded good and my husband would get it or prepare it and after one bite I couldn't eat it. Trial and error. What didn't work one day sometimes worked another day, keep trying. My drinking water tasted salty from week one but that sensation went away when treatment finished. Keep plenty of Ensure and Boost on hand. Good luck.
  • tuffenuff
    tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
    #9
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    hwt said:

    Food
    Since others mentioned milk and pancakes with syrup, they might be worth trying because they worked for me too. For some reason rice krispies with plenty of milk worked for me most days as did baked potato with butter and sour cream. When mouth sores got bad, food went down better with a glass of chocolate milk. I would think of something that sounded good and my husband would get it or prepare it and after one bite I couldn't eat it. Trial and error. What didn't work one day sometimes worked another day, keep trying. My drinking water tasted salty from week one but that sensation went away when treatment finished. Keep plenty of Ensure and Boost on hand. Good luck.

    I've been craving pancakes
    I've been craving pancakes and waffles so maybe that's worth a shot. Frosted mini wheats still taste good for now so I've gone through the better part of a box in three days. I know I won't literally starve and I've only lost 2 pounds so far. Guess I'm just having a moment. Thanks for all the tidbits and suggestions.
  • tuffenuff
    tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
    #10
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    tuffenuff said:

    I've been craving pancakes
    I've been craving pancakes and waffles so maybe that's worth a shot. Frosted mini wheats still taste good for now so I've gone through the better part of a box in three days. I know I won't literally starve and I've only lost 2 pounds so far. Guess I'm just having a moment. Thanks for all the tidbits and suggestions.

    And maybe I will try cream
    And maybe I will try cream of mushroom soup since its milk based. Maybe milk helps it longer on the taste buds just long enough. I had a milkshake yesterday and could kind of taste it too.
  • MarineE5
    MarineE5 Member Posts: 1,030 Member
    #11
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    Bananas
    Hi Tuffie,

    Just a little suggestion, for some reason, I could taste bananas almost all the time. So, I would blend up some ice cream, milk and a banana. I would get the store brand of Ensure so I would get some extra nutrition and have at least one of them a day to add to whatever I was able to eat during the day. Scrambled eggs with syrup on them made them go down easier. Couldn't really taste them, but wanted the protein/nutrition....

    The most important thing to remember is to hydrate.

    My Best to You and Everyone Here
  • Tim6003
    Tim6003 Member Posts: 1,514 Member
    #12
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    MarineE5 said:

    Bananas
    Hi Tuffie,

    Just a little suggestion, for some reason, I could taste bananas almost all the time. So, I would blend up some ice cream, milk and a banana. I would get the store brand of Ensure so I would get some extra nutrition and have at least one of them a day to add to whatever I was able to eat during the day. Scrambled eggs with syrup on them made them go down easier. Couldn't really taste them, but wanted the protein/nutrition....

    The most important thing to remember is to hydrate.

    My Best to You and Everyone Here

    Hi Tuff...
    I always hate to hear somebody's hungry...and hate to see people shiver from cold ...two things that have always "dinged my heart" if you will.

    So I hope you find something to eat soon, even if tasteless. Have you tried the Chocolate or Strawberry Ensure?? I lived on (and still do drink) quite a bit of the chocolate flavor. :)

    Best,

    Tim
  • longtermsurvivor
    longtermsurvivor Member Posts: 1,842 Member
    #13
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    Tim6003 said:

    Hi Tuff...
    I always hate to hear somebody's hungry...and hate to see people shiver from cold ...two things that have always "dinged my heart" if you will.

    So I hope you find something to eat soon, even if tasteless. Have you tried the Chocolate or Strawberry Ensure?? I lived on (and still do drink) quite a bit of the chocolate flavor. :)

    Best,

    Tim

    yup
    as these guys say, it is way easier to get the calories by drinking them. If you cant taste thats no big deal. ut ensure plus a bunch of stuff addednequals a bunch of calories and fluids in a hurry.
  • CivilMatt
    CivilMatt Member Posts: 4,722 Member
    #14
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    cardboard, you can do better
    Hi tuffenuff,

    It is pretty awful isn’t it? My best bet was different flavors of smoothies, using Boost or Ensure to bulk up the calories. In particular I liked the chocolate banana or the blueberry.

    You most likely won’t starve; they usually put you in the hospital before that happens, but you do need to keep the energy bank full for the daily tasks you are going through.

    Just keep drinking, what ever you choose and the hunger will go away.

    Matt
  • Ingrid K
    Ingrid K Member Posts: 813
    #15
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    longtermsurvivor said:

    yup
    as these guys say, it is way easier to get the calories by drinking them. If you cant taste thats no big deal. ut ensure plus a bunch of stuff addednequals a bunch of calories and fluids in a hurry.

    pancakes were good for me.
    Tufe, ditto what everyone else said above. In my case, I lived on pancakes for several weeks until other things started to have a little taste. Frozen blueberry pancakes were the best at home, with lots of syrup to wash them down with. Also, ice cream and just about anything else (bananas, ensure, yogurt) and put in a blender.

    Don't give up trying different things, but above all, continue swallowing so your swallowing muscles don't stop working. I "ate" crushed ice which was easier than swallowing water.

    Good luck !
  • Skiffin16
    Skiffin16 Member Posts: 8,305 Member
    #16
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    Can Relate..
    But eventually you just realize it isn't going to happen for awhile....

    That's when you crank out the DVR and start recording all of those Food Channel shows, and drool your imaginary drool.

    Like mentioned, there was a point that I realized that solid food wasn't really an option. I switched over to Ensure Plus (Strawberry) and a few sliced peaches in Light Syrup. I liked the DelMonte in the Mason type jars.

    Like Marine mentioned, for whatever reason I could always taste a hint of the strawberry and the peaches also.

    The pancakes with a lot of syrup would be less intrusive on your throat than the waffles.

    It'll get better, unfortunately it's just going to take time.

    P51 You must not have read someo of my posts on a different thread concerning Chemo and loss of taste.

    With the three big rounds of chemo (Cisplatin, Taxotere and 5FU), I'd always lose my taste for about a week, kind of iffy week two, then back week three.

    JG
  • tuffenuff
    tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
    #17
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    Skiffin16 said:

    Can Relate..
    But eventually you just realize it isn't going to happen for awhile....

    That's when you crank out the DVR and start recording all of those Food Channel shows, and drool your imaginary drool.

    Like mentioned, there was a point that I realized that solid food wasn't really an option. I switched over to Ensure Plus (Strawberry) and a few sliced peaches in Light Syrup. I liked the DelMonte in the Mason type jars.

    Like Marine mentioned, for whatever reason I could always taste a hint of the strawberry and the peaches also.

    The pancakes with a lot of syrup would be less intrusive on your throat than the waffles.

    It'll get better, unfortunately it's just going to take time.

    P51 You must not have read someo of my posts on a different thread concerning Chemo and loss of taste.

    With the three big rounds of chemo (Cisplatin, Taxotere and 5FU), I'd always lose my taste for about a week, kind of iffy week two, then back week three.

    JG

    Yeah that's what stinks.
    Yeah that's what stinks. Since I'm doing weekly treatments it lookalike I won't be getting the taste break in between. Oh well, bump up the antidepressants and break out the Ensure... Gag...
  • pjm929
    pjm929 Member Posts: 26
    #18
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    tuffenuff said:

    Yeah that's what stinks.
    Yeah that's what stinks. Since I'm doing weekly treatments it lookalike I won't be getting the taste break in between. Oh well, bump up the antidepressants and break out the Ensure... Gag...

    radiatio.
    I'm 3 weeks post surgery. Had cancer, right Tonsil and.in 7 lymph nodes. Slowly getting better, but slowly is the word. I now have to take 30 radiation treatments, 6 weeks, 5 days a week. I am a little nervous, can anyone tell me what to expect?
  • tuffenuff
    tuffenuff Member Posts: 277
    #19
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    pjm929 said:

    radiatio.
    I'm 3 weeks post surgery. Had cancer, right Tonsil and.in 7 lymph nodes. Slowly getting better, but slowly is the word. I now have to take 30 radiation treatments, 6 weeks, 5 days a week. I am a little nervous, can anyone tell me what to expect?

    You can expect to eat
    You can expect to eat blueberry pancakes with syrup lol..

    Just kidding. I had my right tonsil removed and had to follow up with 7 weekly rounds of chemo and 35 rads. I've finished 8 rads with no side effects yet. My loss of taste right now is from the chemo. Only side effect so far. That's all I can say but just about everyone up there ^^^^ has lots more to offer.

    Don't be scared and it's ok to have a crappy day. Mine was yesterday. :o)
  • phrannie51
    phrannie51 Member Posts: 4,716
    #20
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    pjm929 said:

    radiatio.
    I'm 3 weeks post surgery. Had cancer, right Tonsil and.in 7 lymph nodes. Slowly getting better, but slowly is the word. I now have to take 30 radiation treatments, 6 weeks, 5 days a week. I am a little nervous, can anyone tell me what to expect?

    PJM.....
    Post your question in a separate thread, you'll get lots of answers...I'm afraid it will get lost in this thread.

    p
  • longtermsurvivor
    longtermsurvivor Member Posts: 1,842 Member
    #21
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    pjm929 said:

    radiatio.
    I'm 3 weeks post surgery. Had cancer, right Tonsil and.in 7 lymph nodes. Slowly getting better, but slowly is the word. I now have to take 30 radiation treatments, 6 weeks, 5 days a week. I am a little nervous, can anyone tell me what to expect?

    expect to come back here and post a lot:)
    as has been suggested, post a separate thread or two, and ask any and all the questions you want. Your post here will tend to get lost. Welcome to the club.


    Pat

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